Sidebilder
PDF
ePub

by the influence of the Holy Spirit, that we can appear innocent in the sight of God, and be welcome guests at his altar.

4. Holiness of heart and life will naturally follow these, although they will ever be imperfect, while we remain sojourners here on earth. I. H.

[blocks in formation]

WALDENSES.

Their regard for the Holy Scriptures.

During the winter, the Waldenses, living in hamlets on the mountains surrounded by snow, meet together every evening, to hear the Holy Scriptures read by the schoolmaster, who has been engaged in instructing the children in the school throughout the former part of the day.

In the summer they watch their cows, &c. whilst grazing in the meadows and vineyards, to keep them from destroying the vines, and the corn; the corn being often sown in one part of the field, whilst the remainder is grass, without any hedge to separate. Being very industrious, the women and girls carry out a distaff whilst watching cattle on week days; but on the Sunday I have seen them reading the Scriptures whilst watching the cattle.

T. S.

MISSIONARY INTELLIGENCE.

Africa-At a Missionary meeting, a native teacher gave the following account of the way in which God has graciously led him:

"Christian friends-with pleasure I stand up to tell you, what great cause I have to thank God for the unspeakable mercies bestowed upon me. I am a native of the Bassa country, from which it has pleased our gracious God to bring me, through the horrid slave trade.

"" My mother died when I was an infant: and after I had staid with my father a few years, he sent me, with my elder brother, to one of the chiefs of the country, with whom I staid about two weeks: when he sent some people to another country to go trading, with whom also he sent me. I did not know that they were going to sell me. We walked three days before we reached the place-still ignorant of their intention. The next day, I was called for; and, when I came, I heard, by their conversation, that they had sold me. I cried very much; but, alas! as there were no christian religion there, there was no pity. So I became a slave. I looked about me, and I saw none but strangers: my country people were all gone. While I was crying, one came and told me, that I was only put in pound for one month, and that I should return to my friends again. But this was false; no pity, no mercy, was shewn me: like a beast they began to treat me, though I was free born.

"Soon after, they took me to an island, to a white man, named John Mills: to him they sold me. I had been about three weeks a slave to this white man, when it pleased God to send Englishmen to deliver me, and many more. About five o'clock in the morning, five boats, full of soldiers and sailors, landed. We were taken by the head man into the bush. I and another boy tried to run away; but they soon caught us, and brought us back again; and John Mills delivered us to the English, who took us off on board the schooner, and then sailed for Sierra Leone, where we were landed.

"After we had staid about a month in Freetown, we were sent to Regent Town. At the first when we were at Regent, we were surrounded with nothing but bushes; and we did not like to stop there, but we were forced so to do. I believe we were at Regent a whole year without a white man ; and we lived in a most wretched way-' without God-without hope in the world.' After that, Mr. Hirst came, and he took the trouble of teaching me the Lord's Prayer; but my heart did not delight in it. Mr. Hirst also kept meeting,

but I only went to make

game.

"In this awful state I continued 'till Mr. Johnson came, who caused me to stay with him: but I did not like to stop with him at the first. So when he had gone down to Freetown to bring up Mrs. Johnson, I went down to stay with Mr. Reffell. However, Mr. Reffell soon found out that I was good for nothing; and he sent me back again to Regent, and was glad when he got rid of me. So I went, and stayed again with Mr. Johnson, who put me to keep the rice store.

"I then, with the rest of the people, attended Divine Service in the church regularly; and it pleased God, soon after, through the teaching of Mr. Johnson, to call me out of nature's darkness into his marvellous light. I saw myself wretched and lost, until I was pointed by Mr. Johnson to the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world.' I was told to throw myself at the feet of Jesus, through whose blood I enjoyed that peace which passeth all understanding. Since that time, I have struggled with the world, the devil, and the flesh; and I have been alas! too often overtaken by these mighty foes. Yet, through the mercy of God, here I am. Thus far he has upheld me; and I trust he will keep me, by his almighty power, unto the end. 'Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life!! Why? because it has followed me.

"I cannot fully express what I feel. Oh! when I look back, and consider what I was ten years ago, and see what

the Lord has done for me and many of my African brethren, I am astonished, and constrained to exclaim, 'what hath God wrought!'

"Oh! that my God would give me a grateful heart! that I may be thankful to him who has redeemed, yea, who has plucked me as a brand out of the burning, and be grateful to my benefactors-I mean Government, who have been the means of delivering me from temporal slavery; and also to the Church Missionary Society, and its Missionaries, who have been the instruments of delivering me, and I trust I can say, many of my black brethren, and sisters, from the slavery of the devil. Oh! what good has been done through the preaching of the gospel!

"My African brethren, I beseech you to be thankful. You know what we were once, and now behold what great things the Lord has done for us.

"Oh! let us never rest, but be always seeking to make known the great mercies which we have received, freely to our poor benighted countrymen.

"Thanks be to God our Father, who has and does give us the victory, through our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen!"

WARNING.

Breathe thoughts of pity o'er a brother's fall,
But dwell not with stern anger on his fault:
The grace of God alone holds thee, holds all;

Were that withdrawn, thou, too, would'st swerve and halt.

Send back the wanderer to the Saviour's fold,-
That were an action worthy of a saint;

But not in malice let the crime be told,
Nor publish to the world the evil taint.

The Saviour suffers when his children slide,
Then is his holy name by men blasphem'd!
And he afresh is mocked and crucified,
Even by those his bitter death redeem'd.

Rebuke the sin, but yet in love rebuke;
Feel as one member in another's pain;
Win back the soul, that his fair path forsook,
And mighty and eternal is thy gain.

Printed by A. Foster, Kirkby Lonsdale.

FRIENDLY VISITOR.

No. LXXIV.

NOVEMBER, 1824.

VOL. VI.

SOME ACCOUNT OF A POOR COUPLE.

A few months ago, I was desired as a member of the Liverpool Charitable Society, to visit a poor woman in Atherton Street, who was stated to be in great distress. I went the next day to her house. It was up one of those courts, in which the poorest of the Irish chiefly reside; and it presented such a scene of misery, that I confess with shame, I doubted for a moment, whether to enter in or not. My dislike, however, was overcome, and I went up the narrow winding staircase, which led to the poor woman's room. But oh! what a sight did I witness when I entered! In one corner of the room, lay a poor, ghastly looking woman, with scarcely any covering; whilst an old man was sitting on a broken chair, with downcast looks; and a countenance on which want and woe were strongly marked. His long grey locks told me that he had seen many days; whilst the tears rolled down his cheeks, on the mention of his own and his wife's needy condition. The weather was very cold, but they had no fire, save a few embers, which had little warmth in them: and the tattered and patched-up window was but a feeble defence against the piercing winter's wind. Poverty with its dreadful attendants, old age, want, and sickness, stamped a feature of wretchedness on this woe-worn pair, enough to have moved the stoutest heart. I found that the old man had been a sailor forty-eight years; and had, since he left the sea, earned a livelihood by working about the docks. For the last two months, he had been confined by a sore foot; and was then 73 years of age. His wife

L

« ForrigeFortsett »